Always and Forever
by Nathan Lane-Beatles Luvr
Summary: After the Battle of Hogwarts, Remus survived; Dora didn't. Four years later, Hermione tells Remus something that he knew in his heart all along. Dora lives on. *this is a little AU; Sirius is alive and of course, so is Remus*


**I DON'T OWN HARRY POTTER OR ANYTHING AFFILIATED WITH IT, UNLESS YOU COUNT REPLICAS OF REMUS' AND SIRIUS' WANDS, A GRYFFINDOR BANNER, A REMUS LUPIN BUST, AND A GRYFFINDOR NECKLACE. THE WORLD OF HARRY POTTER AND EVERYTHING ASSOCIATED WITH IT BELONGS TO THE BRILLIANT MIND OF J.K. ROWLING**

**A COUPLE OF THINGS BEFORE WE START: **

**1. SIRIUS ISN'T DEAD, NEITHER IS REMUS, BUT TONKS NEEDS TO BE FOR PURPOSES OF THE STORY. I AM SORRY IF I HAVE OFFENDED ANY TONKS FANS OUT THERE**

**2. THIS IS A COUPLE OF YEARS AFTER THE BATTLE OF HOGWARTS, BUT REMUS DOES THINK ABOUT LOSSES AFTER THE BATTLE ENDED**

**THANK YOU, AND ENJOY!**

Remus Lupin was sitting in the extensive library of Grimmauld Place, looking at a book. That's right, _looking_, not reading, but looking. Lately, his mind seemed determined to keep him from concentrating on anything. Four years had passed since the Battle of Hogwarts, as everyone had taken to calling it. Really, for him, it had been the destruction of the home he had loved, the place where he had first felt as though he belonged, and the death of half of himself.

His wife, Nymphadora Tonks, though brave and talented, had perished in the Battle. He had not been there to witness her...death, but when he had seen her lying there, on a stretcher, her young face smudged with dirt, he could have sworn that she had been sleeping.

But she wasn't. Remus remembered, vaguely, that he collapsed onto his knees next to her, tears streaming down his face, but he hadn't realized he was yelling at her to wake up until he heard Sirius screaming.

_Flashback_

_"NO! NO, DORA, NOT HER! NO! NO!" As Sirius reached Remus and Tonks' body, he broke down sobbing uncontrollably. Remus stood up and held Sirius as he cried and sobbed._

_"She's gone. She's gone, Sirius, she's gone," was all Remus could say to try to console his oldest living friend._

_Remus' voice cracked on the word "gone" each time. He felt as though his heart had been ripped out. He felt dead. She wasn't even supposed to be here! She should have been home with Teddy and Andromeda. Oh, Merlin, Andromeda! How was he supposed to tell her that her only daughter was gone? And Teddy...his poor baby son would never know the beautiful person his mother had been. But Remus resolved that he would tell him all about Dora, when he was ready. When he was old enough. _

_Sirius held onto Remus like he was his life preserve. He was hugging Sirius, and Sirius was hugging him back and they were both crying, of that he was sure, but he couldn't feel it. He was numb to everything. All around him, he could hear crying and sobbing, but it didn't register to him. He didn't even want to think of the other losses that the Order, no, not the Order; the losses his friends and his family ha_d _suffered._

_But he needed to. Somehow, he managed to pry himself and Sirius away from Dora after giving her one final kiss, and they both made their way over to where Harry, Hermione, and Ron stood; all of them were crying. Of course they were but Remus wasn't sure why until he saw the bodies they were looking at._

_Harry was holding Ginny as she sobbed into his chest. Hermione and Ron and the rest of the Weasleys were kneeling down on the ground and they were all sobbing and practically screaming with their grief. Sirius and Remus both fell to the ground next to the Weasleys when they saw who they were grieving._

_Fred. Normally he wouldn't have been able to tell between them, but he finally snapped back into reality and he heard George sobbing over his twin's body, "Freddie. Freddie, wake up. Please. FRED! Come on, man wake up."_

_Remus put a hand on George's shoulder and he looked up at his former Professor. The defeat and sadness in George's eyes was one Remus never wanted to see again. George was breaking down, but right now, Remus knew, all he was going to be able to do was cry over his brother's body. Remus looked down at Fred's peaceful, unmarked, nineteen year old face. _

_A face that he had seen so many times laugh and smile and joke with his brother. A face that he remembered clearly teaching when Fred was fifteen. Was it really only four years ago?_

_Remus managed to pry his eyes away from Fred's pale face and looked at Ron and Hermione. Ron was sobbing and crying while he gently petted his older brother's hair, almost in a comforting sort of way. Hermione knelt beside him, her face buried in his shoulder, her own shoulders shaking, owing, no doubt, to the fact that she too was crying. _

_He shifted his gaze to Harry and Ginny. Harry was facing Remus, his eyes shut, as tears leaked out of them, while he held Ginny close to him. When Harry did open his eyes, he looked at Remus and Sirius. He almost smiled, although it was pained. He loosened his grip on Ginny and Ginny looked up at her boyfriend. He nudged his head in Sirius' and Remus' direction and Ginny turned around. Despite her grief, she did smile when she saw Remus and Sirius._

_She and Harry walked over to them and Sirius embraced his godson tightly, while Harry cried. Remus opened his arms to Ginny and she rushed in gratefully. He held the young girl...no, woman, now, and comforted her as best he could. _

_She looked up at Remus and, not for the first time, he marveled at how much the children he met so many years ago had grown. He had met Ginny when she was only twelve years old and although she wasn't innocent, having been possessed by Tom Riddle the previous year, she was still very much a child._

_Now, however, she was more grown up and mature than Remus ever thought possible of a sixteen year old girl. And Harry...Harry was so brave. He had sacrificed himself so that Voldemort could finally be killed and then , by some miracle, Harry came back to life. He came back and destroyed Voldemort, but not without the help of Neville Longbottom, who killed Voldemort's snake, one of the last Horcruxes. And, of course, with the help of his ever-loyal companions, Ron and Hermione._

_Harry went to Remus and Ginny to Sirius, and Remus embraced Harry. Harry smiled sadly at him and Remus said, "I am so proud of you, Harry. And I know James and Lily are too."_

_Harry nodded and the four of them walked back over to the Weasleys. By this time, Hermione and Ron had risen and Ron hugged Harry, Sirius, Ginny and Remus all in turn. Hermione did the same and when she got Remus, she hugged him extra tight._

_"I saw her, Remus," Hermione said. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."_

_Remus didn't need clarification to know who Hermione was referring to. Instead, he just nodded and hugged Hermione tightly as well._

_Later on, as he was walking with Sirius, finding out who else had perished, he was incredibly saddened to learn that Severus Snape had been one of the fallen. In his heart, he knew that Snape had been a good man. He loved Lily far too much to really be on Voldemort's side, especially after her death at Voldemort's hands._

_He continued walking, after kneeling by Severus' body and thanking him for protecting Harry all these years, for he knew that's what Severus had been doing. _

_They continued walking and Remus was thrilled to see that the monster who turned him into a werewolf was dead. He resisted an overwhelming urge to kick Greyback, but he very nearly didn't resist._

_He and Sirius kept walking and the list of good people who had fallen just kept growing. In addition to Fred and Remus' beloved, Tonks, that is. _

_Lavender Brown._

_Colin Creevey._

_Many students who Remus recognized, but couldn't name._

_And then there were the more evil who had fallen._

_Bellatrix Lestrange._

_Rodolphus Lestrange._

_Vincent Crabbe._

_This last person he felt bad for; he was only a kid. Yes, he may have been a Death Eater, but he was still just a kid._

_After the fallen (all of them, good and bad, though separately) were buried, the survivors went back to Grimmauld Place and mourned their losses. They toasted to their friends and family, and to Harry, Hermione, and Ron, who were all thoroughly embarrassed by this._

_End of Flashback_

And now, four years later, Remus found himself in the library, holding his four year old son, who had fallen asleep after coming to see him. Hermione and Ron, who were now married, had stopped by for a visit and Hermione popped her head into the Library.

She smiled when she saw Remus and Teddy.

"Hey, Remus," she whispered.

"It's okay, you don't have to whisper. He sleeps like a rock," Remus said.

"How are you doing?" she asked.

Remus knew what Hermione meant. It was nearing the four year anniversary of Dora's death. It hurt to think about but he knew that Dora would want him to be happy, and he had Teddy.

"I'm okay. It still hurts to think about her and I miss her but I've got Teddy. I've come to terms with the fact that she's gone."

Hermione sat down in the chair next Remus and smiled, "But she isn't, Remus. She isn't gone. Not really."

Remus frowned in confusion and Hermione said, "I see her every day. I see her in the love that you still have for her and always will. I see her in Teddy. He may have your eyes and your smile, but he's got Dora's spirit, her energy, and her strength. Not to mention, her Metamorphmagus powers."

Remus smiled and said, "Thank you Hermione."

Hermione nodded and stood up. She bent over and kissed Remus' cheek and ruffled Teddy's hair, which now, in his relaxed state, had returned to its original color; the same light brown as Remus'.

"Besides," she said, "as I once heard a very wise man say, "The ones who love us never really leave us.""

"Who said that?"

Hermione smiled and as she reached the doorway, she said, "Sirius."

She walked out of the library after saying, "Love ya, Remus."

"Love you, too, Hermione!" Remus called after her, smiling. At this, Teddy stirred and opened his eyes, which mirrored his father's; blue with amber specks.

"Hi, daddy," he said. Remus smiled at his son.

"Hi, cub."

Teddy smiled and his hair went bright blue and his eyes turned to a dark brown color; a color Remus recognized instantly: it was the same color that Dora's eyes were, when she reverted to her natural looks.

_I miss you, Dora, so much, _Remus thought as he looked into his cub's eyes.

And although, it was probably just his imagination, Remus could have sworn that he heard a faint whisper in his ear that sounded remarkably like Dora say, "_I will always be with you, my love. Always._"


End file.
